I think that almost everybody knows that kleptomania is a compulsive stealing of objects unnecessary for personal use or monetary value and the main diagnostic features are:
- The person repeatedly yields to the impulse to steal objects that are needed neither for personal use nor for their monetary worth.
- Just before the theft, the patient experiences increasing tension.
- At the time of theft, the patient feels gratification, pleasure or relief.
- These thefts are committed neither out of anger or revenge nor in response to delusions or hallucinations. But does anybody know the psychological causes?
Most person's with this disorder seem to be women; their average age is about 35 and the duration of illness is roughly 16 years. Some individuals report the onset of kleptomania as early as age five. Psychological cause of kleptomania is still unknown but people think that it may have a genetic component and may be transmitted among first-degree relatives. There also seems to be a strong propensity for kleptomania to coexist with obsessive-compulsive disorder, bulimia nervosa, and clinical depression.
There are some kind of therapies that heal this disorder but there is still a little evidence concerning prevention. A healthy upbringing, positive intimate relationships, and management of acutely stressful situations may lower the incidence of kleptomania and coexisting disorders.
References: http://www.psychnet-uk.com/dsm_iv/kleptomania.htm http://www.article99.com/health-tips/alternative-and-holistic/article.php?art=63562
